OTTAWA—Canada’s industry minister is set to meet with companies desperate for solutions to ease the flow the goods over the border and across the country.
Francois-Philippe Champagne agreed to the request that a consortium of manufacturers and exporters made just before the holidays.
The coalition of 18 associations notes that many of the causes of the current snarls in supply chains in Canada predate the pandemic, but COVID-19 has harshly exposed those weaknesses.
The group is asking the government to accelerate spending on building up trade and transport infrastructure, and co-ordinate with the U.S and Mexico on building more continental capacity to ease reliance on overseas goods.
Champagne says he’s looking ahead to the talks, scheduled for the end of the month, and he points to work underway with ports and transit hubs to prevent bottlenecks choking the flow of goods.
The minister also says he has been having talks with the White House and European Commission about identifying where and how the allies will source critical supplies like vaccines over the next few decades.
